With the cooler temperatures setting in and the holiday season just around the corner, many of us in Penticton are planning and booking our winter holidays. One very crucial component of travel planning should be the selection of your travel insurance. It’s key that you carefully research your needs and verify the terms, conditions, limitations, exclusions and requirements of your insurance policy before you leave for vacation.
When assessing a travel health insurance plan, you should ask a lot of questions. And Underwriters Insurance is here to help! For example, we’ll help you determine if the plan provides continuous coverage for the duration of your stay abroad and after you return? Does it offer coverage that is renewable from abroad and for the maximum period of stay? Does the insurance company have an in-house, worldwide, 24-hour/7-day emergency contact number in English and/or translation services for health care providers in your destination country? Does it pay for foreign hospitalization for illness or injury and related medical costs and provide up-front payment of bills or cash advances, so you don’t have to pay out of your own pocket?
Be sure to ask whether the plan covers pre-existing medical conditions. We encourage you to Underwriters Insurance to explain the definition, limitations and restrictions of any pre-existing conditions and tests and treatments you may have undergone.
Make sure you get a written agreement that your pre-existing medical condition is covered, or you could find your claim “null and void” under a pre-existing condition clause. The agreement must also include a stability clause stating that for you to be covered for any pre-existing medical conditions you must have no changes to or new medical conditions, symptoms or medications during the stability period prior to your trip. It must also include a compassion clause stating that an inaccurate statement may not invalidate the entire policy, and a change of health clause. And ensure that the plan provides for medical evacuation to Canada or the nearest location with appropriate medical care and pays for a medical escort (health care provider) to accompany you to and from your destination.
Ensure that deductible costs are clearly explained in the plan. Plans with 100-percent coverage are more expensive but may save money in the long run. The plan could cover health care provider visits and prescription medicines, or emergency dental care or emergency transportation, such as ambulance services. Check whether it excludes or significantly limits coverage for certain regions or countries you may visit.
Finally, ensure that the plan covers the preparation and return of your remains to Canada if you die abroad.
Underwriters invites you to drop by our office, call or email us so we can help you make the right decision for you and your family’s travel insurance needs.
